Summer Fun Day 2019

There are few things in life better than a summer in Chicago. After an especially cold winter that featured an arctic vortex and snowstorms in April, this season has felt better than ever. And although we really do love coming to NeigerDesign every day, warm weather and thoughts of ice cream on the beach can make working in the summer feel like a slump.

To cure this problem, promote team bonding and discuss ideas, each summer NeigerDesign celebrates our annual Summer Fun Day! On this day, our whole team steps out of the office to participate in fun Chicago activities, enjoy good food, plan new strategies, maybe have a drink (or two...) and overall bond as a company family. Here are some of the strategy topics we bonded over throughout the day:

• 30 Quips and Tips from 30 Years as a Creative Agency Owner
• How to Choose the Best Method of Communication for the Best Outcome
• Pair Programming Best Practices in an Agency Office
• Who are you, anyway?! 6 Key Questions to Answer Before Developing a Brand
• Bitcoin, Blockchain, and the Future of the Digital Communication
• Applying the Rules of Improv to Working in Strategic Marketing
• Tips for Capturing Cityscape Photos

We'll be sure to post these topics separately as blog posts! And�without further ado, here was our Summer Fun Day.

First stop: the most important meal of the day! We met at Brunch Chicago, where we enjoyed some sweet and savory breakfast treats. A group favorite was the giant cinnamon roll � which was big enough to split between our whole staff! Besides enjoying the amazing food, we used time at breakfast to start pitching our ideas for new company blog posts. This allows for everyone to share their area of expertise, and learn new skills from one another.

After breakfast, we took the El to our next destination: The Art Institute of Chicago.

The exhibit we toured was a dream come true for our design-obsessed group. "Posters of the London Underground" featured art from London citizens as part of a campaign in the early 1900s. In order to encourage Londoners to use the transportation system, fondly known as "The Tube," a campaign was started where people would create posters that were then displayed around the city. Many years later, these posters were brought to the Art Institute of Chicago to share with the rest of the world. Homemade, creative, and colorful, it was a joy to see what London locals thought of their beloved train.

Each member of NeigerDesign's team picked a favorite poster to share with the group at the end of our visit. Here are some of our winners!

On this beautiful summer day, we were up for a long walk along the Chicago River to our next destination. Behind the East Bank Club is the Wateriders launch spot, and where we would be departing for a two hour long kayaking tour! Along with leading us down the Chicago River, our tour guides taught us the history of the city and explained some of the architecture along the way. It was a whole new view of the skyline and a fun way to travel around Chicago. Kayaking takes patience, balance and focus � and thankfully no one from NeigerDesign tipped over!

After all the exercise and excitement, we were ready for our next food stop. We headed to Fulton Market to eat at Cabra, Stephanie Izard's cevicheria on top of the Hoxton Hotel. While we treated ourselves to frozen cocktails, chicken empanadas and all types of ceviche, we continued our strategy session with the second half of our team presenting their blog ideas. Though it had already been an action-packed day, the fun wasn't over just yet.

We headed to Emporium Arcade Bar, where we played some nostalgic games like pinball and Ms. Pac-Man while enjoying cocktails and craft beers. And our interns learned that pinball is harder than they thought!

Summer Fun Day was successful in more ways than one. We had an amazing day spending time as friends rather than coworkers and we also managed to have an incredibly productive day as we shared ideas of how to elevate our work even further.

Getting out of the workplace to have fun and get a fresh perspective should never be seen as an unproductive way to spend company time. Everyone deserves a little fun to reset a creative mindset and get ready to tackle the second half of the summer.